Kissimmee Gateway DB Isaiah Wharton leaning toward Rutgers

Chris Hays | Florida RecruitingOrlando Sentinel

For most of his high school career, Isaiah Wharton has floated just under the radar.

A talented defensive back with the not-so-glamourous letterhead of Kissimmee Gateway High, Wharton found himself mired in the Osceola County recruiting abyss that has swallowed so many prospects in the past.

Finally, howver, things have changed. Wharton, who was once so fed up with the recruiting process that he decided to end it by committing to Weber State, his first offer, is back in the thick of things and his renewed patience has paid dividends.

Wharton received his first FBS offer from Illinois back in December and since then he's taken on more interest than ever before. He now also has offers from Rutgers, where he will visit this weekend, as well as Indiana, Southern Miss and a few other schools at the FCS level like Coastal Carolina. He's already visited Indiana and Illinois.

"At first when I committed to Weber State, I was getting stressed out by the recruiting process," Wharton said, "but I knew if I just kept believing then offers would start coming in. And now, offers are coming in so fast and signing day is right around the corner, so it's a little stressful now, but it's a good stress ... this opportunity is a blessinng and I know a lot of kids wish they could go through this process."

Rutgers looks to be weighing pretty favorably in his corner right now. Florida recruiter Jim Panagos, the Rutgers defensive line coach and former UCF assistant, has been in close contact and he will be at Gateway with Rutgers head coach Kyle Flood on Wednesday. He's also been in communication with secondary coach Darrell Wilson.

"Rutgers has been telling me a lot and they've been saying I'm a boundary corner and in the scheme they run they have a lot of DBs on the field and there's a need for me there," said the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Wharton, who is ranked No. 20 in the Sentinel's 2014 Central Florida Super60. "They keep telling me I can get right on the field and help them. ...

"They're joining the Big Ten and I can help them win games and build that program. Big Ten is some big-time football and if they think that highly of me to have a chance to come in and play early that means a lot, so they're really sticking out."